This document discusses prenatal and postnatal growth and development of the mandible. It describes the three phases of prenatal life and outlines the formation and development of structures like the pharyngeal arches, meckel's cartilage, and bones in the mandible through intramembranous and endochondral ossification. It also discusses changes that occur in mandibular growth patterns after birth through childhood and adolescence, including growth at specific sites like the condyle, ramus, and alveolar process.

2. DEFINATION
“Growth was concieved by an
anatomist, born to a biologist, delivered by a
physician, left on a chemist doorstep, and
adopted by a physiologist.At an early age- she
eloped with a statistician, divorced him for a
psycologist, and is now wooed, alternatively
and concurrently, by an endrocrinologist, a
biochemist,a physicist, a mathematician, an
orthodontist, a eugenicist and the children’s
bureau”.

3. Growth and development of an indiviual
is divided into two periods-
 Prenatal period
 Post natal period

4. THE PRENATAL LIFE IS DIVIDED
INTO THREE PERIODS –
1.PERIOD OF THE OVUM
2.PERIOD OF THE EMBRYO
3.PERIOD OF THE FETUS

5. PRE NATAL GROWTH PHASE
 About the fourth
week of intrauterine life,
the pharyngeal
arches are laid down
 The first arch is
called the mandibular
arch and the
second arch the hyoid
arch.

6. Each of these five arches contain -
1. A central cartilage rod that form the skeleton
of the arch.
2. A muscular component termed as
bronchomere
3. A vascular component.
4. A neural element.

7. INTRAMEMBRANOUS BONE
FORMATION
The first structure to
develop in the
primodium of the lower
jaw is the mandibular
division of trigeminal
nerve that precedes the
mesenchymal
condensation forming
the first [mandibular]
arch.

8. At around 36 -38 days of intrauterine life there
is ectomesenchymal condensation
Some mesenchymal cells enlarges , acquire a
basophilic cytoplasm and form osteoblasts
These osteoblasts secrete a gelatinous matrix
called osteoid and result in ossification of an
osteogenic membrane.

9. The resulting intramembranous bone lies lateral to meckel’s
cartilage of first [mandibular ] arch.
In the sixth week of the intrauterine life a single ossification centre
for each half of the mandible arises in the bifurcation of inferior
alveolar nerve into mental and incisive branches

10. During seventh week of intrauterine life bone
begin to develop lateral to meckel’s cartilage
& continues until the posterior aspect is
covered with bone
Between eigth & tewelth week of intrauterine
life mandibular growth accelerate , as a result
mandibular length increses.

11. Ossification stops at a piont , which later become mandibular
lingula, the remaining part of meckels cartilage continues to
form sphenomandibular ligament & spinous process of
sphenoid.
Secondary accseeory cartilage appear between tenth &
fourteenth week of intrauterine life to form head of condyle ,
part of coronoid process & mental protuberance

12. ENDROCHONDRAL BONE
FORMATION
Endrocondral bone formation is seen in 3
areas of mandible-
1) The condylar process
2) The coronoid process
3) The mental process

13. THE CONDYLAR PROCESS-
At fifth week of
intruterine life , an area of mesenchymal
condensation is seen above the ventral part of
developing mandible.
At about tenth week it develops in cone shaped
cartilage.
It migrate inferior & fuses with mandibular ramus at
about 4 month.

14. This cone shaped cartilage is replaced by bone but its
upper end persists acting as growth cartilage & articular
cartilage.

15. THE CORONOID PROCESS-
Secondary
accessory cartilage appear in region of
coronoid process at about 10- 14 week of
intrauterine life.
This cartilage become incorporated into
expanding intramembranous bone of ramus &
dissapear before birth.

16. THE MENTAL REGION-
In mental region , on
either side of symphysis , one or two small
cartilage appear and ossify in seventh week of
intrauterine life to become mental ossicles.
These ossicles become incorporated into
intramembranous bone when symphysis ossify
completely.

17. POST NATAL GROWTH PHASE
At birth the two rami of the mandible are short ,
condylar development is minimum and there is no
articular eminence in glenoid fossa. A thin layer of
fibrocartilage & connective tissue exists at the midline
of symphysis to separate right & left mandibular
bodies.
At fourth month of age and end of first year symphysial
cartilage is replaced by bone

18. During first year of life
appositional growth is
active at alveolar
border, at distal &
superior surfaces of the
ramus, at the condyle,
along the lower border
of mandible and on its
lateral surface.

19. After first year of life these changes occurs -
 Mandibular growth become more selective , condyle
shows considerable activities, mandible moves and
grows downward & forward.
 Appositional growth occurs on posterior border of the
ramus and on the alveolar process.
 Resorption occurs along the anterior border of ramus
lenthening the alveolar border & maintaining the
anterior- posterior dimension of ramus.

21.  Gonial angle changes after little muscle activity.
 Transverse dimension is mainly due to growth at
posterior border in an expanding V pattern.

23.  The two rami also diverge outward from below to
above so that additive growth at coronoid notch ,
coronoid process &condyle also increses the superior
inter-ramus dimension.
 Alveolar process of mandible grows upward &
outward on an expanding arc. This permit dental arc to
accommodate the larger permanent teeth.

24. Scott divides the mandible into three basic
types of bone –
1) Basal
2) Muscular
3) Alveolar
 Basal portion is tube like central foundation running
from condyle to the symphysis.
 Muscular portion [gonial angle &coronoid process]
is under influence of masseter, internal pterygoid &
temporal muscle. They determine the ultimate form
of the mandible in these areas.

25. Alveolar portion exists to hold the teeth &
gradually resorbed in the event of tooth loss.
Reduced muscular activity
would account for flattening of gonial angle
and reduction of the coronoid process.

26. MOSS say that the mandible as a group of microskeleton unit
–
 Coronoid process as one skeleton unit under influence of temporalis.
 Gonial angle is another skeleton unit under influence of massetor &
internal pterygoid muscles.
 Alveolar process is under the influence of the dentition.
Basal tubular portion of mandible serves as protection for the
mandibular canal and follows a logarithim spiral in its downward &
forward movement from beneath the cranium.

27. THE CHIN –
Enlow & harris feel that chin is
“associated with a generalised cortical
recession in the flattened regions positioned
between the canine teeth. The process involves
a mechanism of endosteal cortical growth.”
 On lingual surface, behind the chin heavy
periosteal growth occurs , with the dense
lamellar bone merging and overlaping on the
labial side of the chin.

28.  In male , the apposition of the bone at
symphysis seems to be about the last change in
shape during the growing period. This change
is much less apparent in the females.